Emeralds and Aces
by piratearrow
Summary: Rogue is the untouchable one, a stranger stumbles into the door, a gamble presents itself but is she going to choose Emeralds or Aces?


The world was stunning in the evening sunset. The orange and blue hues mixed together slowly as the sun dipped below the horizon. It was that serene view that Rogue studied with intense interest, often she found herself watching the wonder all alone. It was normal for the untouchable one; at least that's how she reasoned it in her mind. Just before the final rays of light vanished she stood and wiped off the blades of grass from her legs. Taking a breath she flew off in the direction of Xavier's knowing that she had an early danger room session, she wouldn't let herself fall into her once normal self pitying attitude.

Rogue had been at Xavier's for a little over four years, not counting her little bout of self discovery just after taking the cure. At twenty she had grown into her body, standing at 5'5 she still had her pale alabaster skin, emerald eyes, and two very distinct white stripes marking her chocolate auburn waves of hair. The two stripes fluttered against her face as she floated down to the ground going through the garage.

"Hey Stripes" A gruff voice muttered from underneath the hood of a red convertible. Rogue wasn't much one for cars, "Hey Logan, what are you adding in this time?" she questioned half heartedly. "Just a tune-up," He sniffed for a second turning to face Rogue; taking the rag and wiping his hands and face free of the soot and dirt, "Come here for a sec Rogue," Logan's voice was soft with a bit of rasp from his natural growl. She glided across the floor in a few steps standing in front of him. "What's up Logan?" her eyes looked into Logan's dark eyes wondering what he wanted.

Taking the rag in his hand he brought it up to her face and swiped it gently across her cheek. "What have I told you about these silent tears?" he questioned her not with worry or concern, but rather awareness. "My eyes aren't worth my tears," she whispered back to him a slight lightness in her voice. Logan nodded at her with a smirk and turned to his work on the car. Rogue smirked at Logan and turned to walk inside her stomach growling just slightly. "Hey kid." Wolverine called a bit louder, Rogue looked over her shoulder he looked up and pointed to his cheek, "You have a little something right here," and smirked back at her once more. Rogue offered a smile; it was rare for her to have a smile that reached her eyes. Logan noticed it and was happy with himself, he knew he was the only person she trusted one hundred percent at the mansion. Marie was the girl who smiled and her eyes shown with brightness, and it was Marie the girl he first met in Canada that he loved to bring out.

Marching into the kitchen she grabbed a paper towel, turning on the faucet and soaking it in water, patting the dirt off her skin, reveling in the feeling on her skin. It was in this moment she was interrupted by one person she didn't feel like speaking too. Bobby Drake, the school pretty boy as she deemed and Rogue's ultimate heart breaker. She had gone to take the cure because she was angry, angry at him for kissing Kitty, cheating on her, angry that she would never get to experience a real kiss. Bobby was really popular compared to others in the school but those close to him know how much he really had hurt Rogue. There eyes locked for a millisecond before the air became stiff with tension and before Bobby could utter one word, Rogue was out of the room and halfway up the stairs.

In the subsequent years since, it was still hard for Rogue to even be in the same room with him, he represented everything she would never get to enjoy. Stripping down she changed from her clothes and into some long pajama pants and a white long sleeved top, her gloves folded neatly on the nightstand next to her. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she lay down on her bed; emerald irises scanned the room around her just off in the corner was her roommate and best friend Jubilition Lee. The firecrackers bed was a mess of bright colors and pillows of all sorts of textures. It was a giant contrast to Rogue's clean pristine silk hunter green comforter and minimalist personal items. Her nightstand held a lamp, one photograph, her gloves, and Logan's dog tags.

Questions loomed in the back of Rogue's mind as she made herself comfortable in her bed, the most important question she had was would she ever gain control? That question plagued her dreams and nightmares. Rogue's eyes flicked open instantly, she wasn't in the mansion any longer, but rather a cold solid floor, stone everywhere with only one door open, she took it. Darting out of the room she slid against the wall not knowing where her enemies lay waiting. Hair matted against her face she ran as fast as her legs could carry her. The hallways were dark she could only see her next step and nothing more, the echoes of her feet against the pavement rang in her ears and when she stopped for one second she heard a guttural scream. Heart pounding in her chest she burst through a door to see multiple red dots pointed at her chest and Magneto standing in front of them.

"Welcome back my dear." His voice was smooth and calm like only years of living and experience could bring. The click of his boots against the floor made Rogue's skin crawl and she backed away from him step for step. The red dots were still trained on her chest as she fought to get the words in her mouth to form. " What d'ya want from me? " the question lingered in the air for moments, Magneto's cold blue icey eyes bore into her, each step causing her heart to pound harder. Her breath stated to turn ragged and she placed her bare hands in front of her hoping that his fear of her power would help her but he placed on a cold calculating smirk, a smirk she recognized all to well. It frightened her to the core.

Rogue awoke in a sweat, her chest tight as a shaky breath made it's way from between her lips. She had long learned how not to scream from a nightmare, she had them almost every time she fell asleep, she really couldn't remember the last time she had had a full nights rest. Looking over at the bed on the other part of the room Jubilee was still sound asleep and snoring and mouth hanging open. Rogue was jealous of the innocence Jubiltion had, sure she had seen the hatred against mutants, all of them had, but Jubilee was able to wake up everyday with a giant smile on her face. Swinging her feet to the floor, Rogue peeled off the white long sleeve shirt and grabbed another from her drawer before walking over to the bathroom. Closing the door softly she turned on the cold water and took a wash cloth wetting it and wiping her sweat slick skin, clean. The water dripped in bits along her skin, her hand rose to her neck making small circle motions the cloth still soft and delicate. A whimsical sigh escaped her lips as her eyes fluttered closed for a moment. How she wished the cloth was a man finger tips skin to skin caressing her neck gently, but those thoughts always led to sadness so she stopped herself. Folding up the washcloth she hung it over the faucet to dry and slipped on her new white long sleeved top.

Knowing she wasn't about to go to bed anytime soon she slipped on her gloves and a pair of warm brown slippers. Rogue slipped out of the room and closed the door with a soft click before wandering down to the back patio that faced the woods and the vast amounts of land before her. She always thought she could find a way to be normal, to be accepted, even the cure didn't help. Staring off into the wondrous wildlife she saw a quick movement that put her nerves on edge, but she stayed standing out there enjoy the nice weather. Her mind wandered off into daydreams for a while, until she realized that the shadow she had seen earlier was an actual person, stumbling up to the patio and as much as Rogue wanted to run he didn't seem a threat.

" May I help ya?" she questioned, the man's eyes never looking up at her.

" Xavier, I be told he he-" The visitor didn't get to finish his sentence because he collapsed right at Rogue's feet. Rogue was panicking, this stranger had said Xavier's name but she didn't know if he was an enemy or a friend. Bending down her gloved hand brushed his shaggy hair out of his eyes and she noticed how handsome he was. A chiseled chin and defining cheekbones, his face seemed strong and masculine. Getting up she ran inside and woke Xavier and the others to help the nameless stranger into the house.


End file.
